John Krygelski - The Aegis Solution

Leah moved the phone closer to her mouth. “Kennerley, this is Leah Charon. I’ll tell you what to do.”

Elias and Tillie had progressed beyond the section of the culvert called home by the bats, and could see the dim illumination of twilight as a small square beyond the limit of their lights. As they drew closer to the end of the drainage culvert, the concrete floor had become increasingly coated with a thicker and rippled layer of dust, which had been carried in and deposited by the sometimes vicious winds of the desert.

Over the reverberations of their footsteps scraping on the gritty powder, Elias’ ears picked out a different sound, a sound which triggered an immediate response in the primitive portion of his brain. He froze in place, his arm lashing out and grabbing Tillie’s. She could sense that this was not the moment to question him.

At the instant their steps ceased, the vague warning became distinct and unmistakable. He had become so fixated on the approaching opening at the end of the drain that he had neglected to look downward in quite some time. Shining the light down now, he saw that they were standing in the midst of a nest of diamondback rattlesnakes.

It was impossible to estimate their number, as they were interwoven and coiled together, in an attempt to retain their body heat during the impending night. But he was fairly sure that he could count at least thirty in their pathway. Tillie’s only reaction, when she saw them in his light, was a sharp intake of breath. Several of the snakes, reacting to their arrival, were coiled in a strike position, tails elevated and vibrating, shaking the brittle keratin rattles so quickly that they were nothing but a blur.

Slowly, Tillie brought the shotgun around, aiming it in the general direction in front of them. Elias, still gripping her arm, took one step back, pulling her with him. Then another step. Followed by a third. He shined his light on the floor behind to make certain that they had not passed any snakes on their way to this point. Seeing none, he turned and began retracing his steps, with Tillie only a pace behind.

After they had moved a safe distance, she said, “Those were definitely not there either, the last time I was here.”

“I assumed that.”

“How can we get past them?”

“Short of systematically shooting all of them, burning them out, or waiting until tomorrow morning in the hope that it might get warm enough for them to leave, I can’t think of a thing.”

As Elias neared the corner of the heavily damaged corridor where the grenade had exploded earlier, he expected to hear the reciprocating saw and the sounds of people tearing away the obstruction at the exit. Instead he heard silence. Concerned, he held up a hand to stop Tillie and Sweezea, who were following behind him. His rifle ready, he cautiously approached the intersection and peered around. His first sight was Leah, Wilson, Crabill, and Hutson huddled across the hallway from the shrapnel-ridden door to the utility room. Faulk was not in sight, and there did not appear to be any sort of threat.

Elias stepped out into the open. “What’s going on?”

Leah, hearing his voice, whirled around and ran to him. “Elias!”

He met her halfway and she threw her arms around him, holding him tightly. The change in her demeanor since he had seen her last was dramatic.

His face buried against her neck, he murmured, “Leah, what’s wrong?”

She lingered pressed to him for a few more seconds before stepping back. Now that she was closer, he could see that she had been crying. This aspect of her personality had always been a fascinating dichotomy to Elias. He had witnessed tears from her many times in their relationship, but always during a sentimental movie, or as she read a particularly moving book. Occasionally, if he surprised her with an unexpected and thoughtful gift, she would struggle not to cry, usually failing miserably. But in the field, in the midst of intense pressure and horrific events, she was never one to give in to this emotion. The sight of it now worried him even more.

Clearly unsure of her own voice, Leah waited a minute before she began to speak. Tillie, Hutson, Crabill, Wilson, and Sweezea had moved closer to them. “There was a call from one of Faulk’s people. The pathogen is out early.”

“Oh, my God! How?”

“After I heard what this Kennerley had to say, I questioned Faulk and got a few more details. Apparently, there was a lab accident either earlier today or last night. Faulk knew that a technician was dead. But he thinks the microbe is still contained inside the sealed lab. When Kennerley called a few minutes ago and he thought he was reporting to Faulk, he said that another technician was dead. Somehow the other technician had gone all the way home before she died. Kennerley was frantic…desperate…but from what I could tell, everyone who has come close to her is either dead or dying, and it is spreading fast.”

Elias took in the information, his mind spinning in an attempt to assimilate it all. “So an accident released it several hours early. I don’t understand why Faulk’s man was panicking. I’m sure his people would have already received the vaccine.”

She delivered the final piece of news, although clearly not wanting to speak the words. “He had. Supposedly, so had the two lab technicians.”

“But….” Elias stopped, his mind was suddenly hammered by the flash of comprehension. “The vaccine doesn’t work.”

“Right.”

“How could that be? They must have tested it.”

“They did, several times on several groups of subjects. The monsters tested it on every race, age group, lifestyle type, you name it. It protected the subjects with a one-hundred-percent success rate.”

Elias stood frozen as his mind processed the variables, the options, the alternatives, sifting through each for a possible solution. Hitting only a blank wall, he slowly drew a deep breath. “So it’s over. For all of us. Faulk and his group have killed everyone on Earth.”

His eyes moved from one member of the group to another. Crabill and Hutson were despondent. Tillie and Sweezea, furious. Only Wilson seemed not to be reacting to the situation, his face calm, his eyes focused on some faraway vista. Elias decided that the mathematician had entered into the comforting realm of denial.

He turned back to Leah. “Where did it start?”

“D.C.”

“And from what Faulk said earlier, one release point is enough to take care of the whole planet.”

Leah nodded in agreement. “I can’t imagine that Kennerley wouldn’t have notified the others that there was a problem and cancelled the rest of the releases.”

“I don’t know what good it will do, but we do have Faulk’s phone. We should tell someone.”

“Again, who?” Leah asked flatly. “According to Faulk, most of the leaders are in on this. I thought we owed it to Benjamin, since he was the only one who tried to help you, but when I called him, all of the circuits were busy. I sent a text message, but I have no way of knowing if he got it. There hasn’t been a reply.”

“I’m sure. With an epidemic spreading, the land lines and cells would be flooded with calls.”

“What happened in the tunnel?”

Elias explained what he and Tillie had encountered. Then he handed his rifle to Leah. “Where’s Faulk?”

“In the utility room. After the call, we handcuffed him to a standpipe in there. I wanted us to be able to talk where he wouldn’t overhear anything.”

“So he doesn’t know yet?”

“No.”

Elias began walking to the utility room. “I’ll be happy to break the news to him. Just before I kill the bastard for his part in this.”